1. skillful understanding
so I started to read more about eight fold path. which is based upon 3 cardinal points, understanding, effort and mindfulness. one of the core teachings of buddha. and i realized what I was trying to do from last few months was to build the right understanding. which is the first fold in eight fold path. but it is far more deep. what I believe he is pointing to understand is clear nature of reality. and 2 simple law of nature.
cause and effect -
it’s quite simple and profound argument, everything that we think, say or do has result. to be honest I never really investigate it like that. but at some level in my heart I can feel this to be a truth. and I am completely inline with arithmetic nature of mind.
current state of dissatisfaction or joy is basically the result of previous causes. greed hatred and delusion will always result into dissatisfaction and loving kindness and compassion will always result in joy and happiness.
engaging in unskillful act will have an emotional hangover
four noble truth -
the first noble truth - suffering - the default reality of untrained mind is suffering. and it is not the suffering of loosing job and things and love and whatever, the concept is about suffering on mental level. three core reason of suffering beside all the crap we have voluntarily accumulate.
the life cycle : aging, sickness and death, it is quite clear it could be strong cause of suffering. and ignorance seems like an amateurish, fearful and hopeless reaction.
impermanence : the second cause of suffering is impermanence. the idea is nothing is solid and everything is a stream. the self in itself is a stream of experience thus constantly changing and in process ( and this is the best part ). on the mental level I can clearly understand this phenomena that how thoughts, emotion, afflictions and even good experience rises and fall. attachment to any particular state is going to bring suffering as it would be dissolved sooner or later. doesn’t mean You don’t enjoy anything but the kind of enjoyment comes with attachment is surely leading to suffering.
the problem is mind believe everything is solid while the truth is otherwise.selfless : this is the basic misunderstanding of that there is a quality possessed by an external object. but in reality everything we perceive is basically raw data and out minds gives it a meaning put it in a pleasant/unpleasant box and cling to it. the five aggregates attempt to explain the whole process.
no control : again it’s not in the material sense, I think it is pointing more in the direction of faith. we can’t even control our own breath. can’t control age, sickness, death and we really don’t have much of the direct control over how we feel, or think. we can create the cause but we can’t directly flip the switch and feel good. or may be it is pointing to more deeper direction.
the second noble truth - cause of suffering -
the cause of suffering is desire. or we can abstract it in the form of attachment and aversion. but why desire is there at the first place. from where it comes ? desire seems to be built in to for survival. so in it’s primitive form it does make some sense. on top of it social conditioning which is a complete nonsense and causes rookie suffering.
the tricky one are based on pleasurable feeling. the fundamental characteristic of these are
- pleasures are fleeting. it just evaporate too fast.
- it’s never enough. it’s just never enough. it always feels once I get that. even some time I already have done that. but still it feels like naaa, that wasn’t enough once I get to do the better version of it. it is a trap. a big one and hidden.
the less intense example is dog with bone and more accurate is honey on blade. but one way or another desire comes from ignorance. ignorance that desire creates comfort and ignorance that it has no cost.
infect it is quite easy to distort reality. specially by solving words problems, becoming self centered or just running away from reality.
whatever the degree we desire is whatever the degree we suffer.
the third noble truth - the end of suffering -
the end of suffering is to completely eradicating this false illusion or ignorance. and thus removing all the desire of attachment and aversion. but how would it feel without these. isn’t everything that I know and understand is based on these desires. how would it be like to live without greed, hatred, fear, and disillusion. how would it feel like if I slip into the other reality. as buddha taught it can not be comprehend without experiencing, but I could understand the calmness in mind. freedom of afflictive bondages, compassion. it is definitely better than what I am experiencing now.
the fourth noble truth - the path
and that’s the proven way to eradicate attachment and aversion.